Honking, speeding: that’ll be the lady driver

Psychologists have found that some young women are adopting the bad driving habits normally associated with men.

Women reported that they commonly resorted to tailgating, risky overtaking, beeping the horn and making rude gestures at drivers in their way.

The research came as Home Office figures confirmed that an increasing proportion of women were being prosecuted for offences such as speeding and drink-driving.

While men still account for the majority of speeding convictions, the proportion of women prosecuted for driving too fast rose by more than half to 17% between 1996 and 2002. Women also account for a growing number of offences such as drink-driving, driving without insurance, ignoring traffic signs and parking offences.

The study, by psychologists at Rollins College, Florida, and the Saitama…